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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27136660">Strange Customs</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/diamondforger/pseuds/diamondforger'>diamondforger</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kamen Rider Saber</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Non-Consensual Drug Use</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 06:42:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,006</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27136660</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/diamondforger/pseuds/diamondforger</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Rintaro gets some unusual candy at a Halloween party.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1945867</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Strange Customs</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>No 22. DO THESE TACOS TASTE FUNNY TO YOU?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Poisoned | <strong>Drugged</strong> | Withdrawal</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div>
  <p>Halloween was such an odd holiday. Humans dressed up in strange costumes and tried to scare each other.  Rintaro didn't really get it, but he didn't get a lot of human things. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>The only thing that mattered to him was that one of Halloween's biggest traditions was candy.  An absolutely perfect excuse for Rintaro to try out as many sweet things as this strange world offered.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>It was strange to him that neither Touma nor Mei seemed excited about their night out.  He'd expected with Touma's fondness for dressing up and putting on shows that the man would be over the moon for a costume party.  And Mei seemed downright sullen at the prospect of the party. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"It's a work party," Mei explained with a sigh, "I'm new to company and a lot of my coworkers are jerks." Her face scrunched up as she turned to him.  "They think I'm bad at my job just because I only have one client so far."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Why are you going if you hate them?" he asked.  "Why not spend time with friends?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Networking," Mei said.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>And that was the end of the conversation.  Rintaro still didn't understand what "networking" meant, but he knew his main job at the party was to stay out of the way unless Mei or Touma signaled him to interrupt.  It seemed like a boring way to spend the night, but he'd been promised snacks.  A lot of snacks he'd be free to try while the other two were struggling through their job obligations. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He didn't even need a costume at least, according to them.  His regular uniform was perfect for the party.  Which did seem odd because the other two both dressed up.  Touma as a pirate and Mei as a princess.  Mei insisted multiple times that she actually wanted to have a "fun" costume, but her options were limited.  She had to look "professional," whatever that meant for a costume party. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>From the moment they arrived, Rintaro could see why his friends wouldn't want to be there.  It was crowded, and loud.  There were too many people in too small a space and the music was overwhelming.  He could barely hear as Touma introduced him to the hosts of the party.  They barely seemed to hear his greeting either, but they welcomed him in anyway. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>They lost Mei in the crowd almost instantly.  Some older woman dressed like a witch grabbed her arm and directed her to another table.  Before Rintaro could intervene, he'd lost sight of her. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma put a hand on his shoulder, leaning in close to yell in his ear.  "She's fine.  That's her boss.  He's going to introduce her to some new clients, see if they click."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Does she want other clients?" Rintaro yelled back. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma shrugged. "I'd assume so.  She just doesn't seem to click with any of them like she does with me."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Before they could even attempt to continue the conversation, a man dressed in a fancy suit appeared from the crowd, clapping Touma on the back. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Hey, long time no see," he said with a large, fake grin, "have you put any thought into that offer I, so generously, gave you last month?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma forced a smile onto his face.  "My answer hasn't changed," he answered shortly. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Oh, don't be like that," the man wrapped an arm around Touma's shoulders, "Let's talk."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma shot a look at Rintaro.  He already looked miserable, but he didn't give the signal to be saved.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma was dragged out of sight, leaving Rintaro alone and unsure what to do.  No one tried to talk to him as he pushed through the crowd.  Eventually, he found what he'd come there for. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>There were several tables laden with various snacks. Many of them looked gross, but he'd been assured by Mei that they were really gross.  Part of the Halloween tradition was making nice things look gross or spooky. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He filled up a plate before retreating to the corner.  He could almost make out Touma's pirate hat over the crowd, but Mei was harder to pick out. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>As he scanned the room for her, a stranger extracted himself from the crowd and leaned up against the wall, inches from Rintaro. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"I don't recognize you," he said.  His outfit could almost be mistaken for that of a knight of Logos, but it was far too ill fitting and cheaply made.  "Who'd you come here with?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Ms. Sudo," he answered shortly, shoving a cookie in his mouth in an attempt to show his disinterest in continuing the conversation. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Oh? Her?" The man looked like he was about to laugh, but thought better of it.  "Listen," he said, leaning closer to Rintaro.  "You look just as bored of this party as I feel. Do you wanna have a little fun?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Depends what kind of fun you mean." The others had warned Rintaro not to engage much with the humans at the party, but he was bored and a bit curious. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"I just got some... candy," the man winked, "if you know what I mean."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro very much did not know what the man meant, but he nodded anyways.  That was how he usually handled humans.  It was better to pretend to understand and try to figure out the details as the conversation continued. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Normally I wouldn't be giving this out for free," the man said as he reached into his coat, "But for someone as cute as you, I could make an exception.  You down?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Yes." A bit of doubt tugged at Rintaro's mind as he said it. There was something secretive in the way the man was speaking to him.  But then again, everyone at this party seemed to be working on an entirely different social script.  </p>
</div><div>
  <p>The man grinned and pulled out a small bag, emptying a few brightly colored gummies into his palm.  Rintaro extended a hand to take them, but the man ignored that.  He slid closer to Rintaro, lifting the candy to his lips. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro opened his mouth and let the man slip the candy between his lips.  The man was staring at Rintaro's mouth as his fingers lingered, brushing over his bottom lip.  It made Rintaro's face heat and he looked away. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>The man leaned in even further, mouth brushing up against Rintaro's ear, "Come find me when it kicks in."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro swallowed so hard the candy got lodged uncomfortably in his throat making him cough. He wanted to ask the man what he meant by that, but by the time he'd cleared his throat, the man was gone, headed back to the snack table. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro watched him go, hand coming up to his mouth.  His lips were tingling from the contact and his heart was racing.  Humans customs were strange, but this one was stranger than most. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro really felt like he should ask someone about it.  He looked around the room again and saw Mei trying to break away from a conversation with a man dressed like a cowboy.  She looked over and waved at him aggressively. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>RIntaro moved to her.  The man lost interest before Rintaro got close enough to hear what they were saying.  She sighed deeply and threw an arm around his shoulders.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Thanks for the help," she said, "He was so annoying.  Where'd Touma go?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Someone grabbed him," Rintaro said, "said something about an offer."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"That asshole's trying to poach him from me again," Mei glared at around the crowd, "I mean I know Touma's not going to fall for it, but it's still rude for him to try."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Hey, I have a question," Rintaro leaned in close, "Is it normal for humans to-"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Mei jerked away as someone tapped her shoulder.  "Can you wait a moment?" she asked the woman dressed like an angel. "I'm talking to my friend."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"No, I can't," the woman grabbed her arm and tugged Mei away.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"I'm so sorry, I'll answer your question as soon as I finish this," she said as she was dragged back into the crowd. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro was starting to feel a little lightheaded.  The music was really loud and this was more people than he'd ever been around before.  The night was quickly turning from a novel experience to a stressful one. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>With Mei gone, Rintaro tried to locate Touma again.  The man seemed to have vanished in the sea of unfamiliar faces. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>As he searched for his friend, Rintaro noticed his head starting to feel oddly fuzzy. The room around him felt tighter and the faces of the party goers blur together.  For some reason he kept forgetting what he was doing. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Was this just a normal reaction to this sort of environment? His brain felt full of cotton and his mouth was dry.  It must just be a strange stress reaction, he convinced himself. He just needed something to help him calm down. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He moved to the food table again, making a beeline for the large punch bowl.  He just needed something to drink that would deal with the thirst. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He stumbled as he moved towards it. His body wasn't cooperating and the table only seemed to get farther the more he walked.  He was knocking into people, all of whom were giving him weird looks.  He was supposed to be keeping a low profile, but it felt like the whole room was staring at him. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He was sweating by the time he finally made it to the drink table.  Every moment stretched out as he filled a cup.  It felt like hours by the time the time he brought the cup to his lips.  He was so thirsty that he chugged the whole thing in one go. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>It didn't do anything to quench his thirst.  He reached to get more, but a hand grabbed his wrist.  He jumped, looking up to see Touma's face twisted in concern. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Hey, be careful," Touma said painfully slowly, "This drink is pretty strong."</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Some...thing... wrong," Rintaro reached out for Touma, but his hand only caught thin air. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Touma grabbed Rintaro's coat and pulled him away from the table.  It was all Rintaro could do to stay upright as he was pulled across the party.  Everything was spinning around him and his heart was pounding.  Why couldn't he think? Why was this happening?</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Cold night air hit Rintaro's face as they finally escaped the hellish party.  He leaned against Touma, closing his eyes.  Getting away from the noise and crowding helped, but his brain still wasn't back to normal.  He just wanted whatever was happening to just be over already. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"What happened?" Touma's face was uncomfortably close.  It took up Rintaro's whole field of vision.</p>
</div><div>
  <p>"I don't..." Rintaro couldn't focus on answering because Touma's face was changing. It twisted and morphed in front of his eyes.  Was this even Touma? It might be a trick.  That made sense.  More sense than anything else that'd happened that night.  He was being manipulated by a Megid. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>He shoved "Touma" away and went to draw his sword.  His hand swiped at his coat, missing the weapon entirely.  He couldn't even grab his sword in this condition.  He fumbled around uselessly, but his hands just wouldn't work.  His stomach twisted and he almost threw up on the pavement. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>"Calm down." Mei was by his side.  When had she gotten there? How long had he been fumbling around in front of the Megid? "Rintaro, it's okay," she was talking, but he could barely understand.  It felt like she wasn't even in the same room as him.  Like he was watching through a screen.  But she was looking right at him, she had to be talking to him.  "We're going to get you home, okay?"</p>
</div><div>
  <p>Tears were welling in his eyes as he buried his face in her shoulder.  He still felt horrid and unsteady, but at least Mei felt real.  And so did Touma as his hand squeezed Rintaro's shoulder. </p>
</div><div>
  <p>Rintaro still didn't understand what was happening to him, but he at least understood he was safe now. </p>
</div>
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